In this episode, I talk to Prof. Sandhya Koushika, a Cellular Neurobiologist and Associate Professor in the Department of Biological Sciences at the Tata Institute of Fundamental Research, Mumbai. She is a recipient of the International Early Career Award by the Howard Hughes Medical Institute. We talk about her foraying into science and academia, working with C. elegans, her terrific mentors, overcoming personal and professional barriers, negotiating COVID19 by stitching new collaborations and combating pseudoscience, and her inspiring advice to budding scientists.